A US district judge dismissed criminal charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani on August 10, 2026, ending a high-profile bribery and fraud case [1, 2, 3, 4].
Adani had been indicted in November 2024 in a New York federal court on allegations that he and others paid over $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials to secure solar energy contracts and misled US investors [1, 2, 3, 4]. The case also accused them of obstructing justice in a scheme valued at approximately $265 million [3, 4].
The Justice Department decided to drop the indictment and formally filed a request to dismiss the charges on May 18, 2026 [2, 3, 4]. Brooklyn-based US District Judge Nicholas Garaufis granted the dismissal but sharply criticized the conduct behind the decision. He said Deputy Associate Attorney General Trent McCotter made the call without consulting the prosecutors or FBI and SEC agents who investigated the case, instead collaborating closely with Adani's defense lawyers [1, 3, 4].
Judge Garaufis said, "McCotter appears to have eschewed the professional opinions of innumerable officials from various federal offices and replaced them with his singular judgment," and called the irregularities "concerning" [1, 4].
Adani expressed relief at the court ruling. He said, "I welcome the US Court's decision with humility and deep respect for the judicial process," and added that throughout the ordeal, his "faith in truth, fairness and the rule of law remained unwavering" [1, 4].
Before the charges were made public in November 2024, Adani had pledged to invest $10 billion in the United States [1, 2, 3, 4]. Judge Garaufis ruled that the investment promise did not influence the Justice Department's dismissal of the case [1, 3, 4].
Adani shares his lawyer, Robert Giuffra, with US President Donald Trump, whose second term coincided with the decision to drop the case [3, 4]. The final ruling closes the chapter on allegations of bribery and fraud involving one of India's wealthiest business figures.
The court order officially dismissing the charges marks the end of proceedings in this case.
